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Norway

As if the name is not enough in and of itself! She is my Great Great Great Grandmother and since we stopped at her grave in Portland, Multnomah, Oregon this past week, I thought it fitting to write about her.

Constance was born 23 April 1857 in Drammen, Buskerud, Norway to Olaves Jorgensen and Hanna Mathea Christensen. According to the 1875 Norwegian Census, her name was Konstanse Elise Olavesen, but when she immigrated to the United States she was given her father’s last name, Jorgensen. Actually according to the 1875 Norwegian Census, however correct it is, the last name is Jørgensen, but Americans don’t use that extra letter in our alphabet, so it dropped to the regular ‘o’. I don’t know where she picked up the Josephine, if she ever really did.

She married Ole Christiansen about 1874, I have yet to find that date and location. The two of them immigrated in 1889 through New York, New York, New York. However, they both took the long way to America. Walborg and Martha, their daughters, were born in Fredrikstad, Ostfold, Norway in 1875 and 1879 respectively. Martha is my Great Great Grandmother. Eivelda and Constance was born in 1881 and 1883 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Then Henry was born back in Fredrikstad in 1887! Then, the remaining six children were all born in Cache County, Utah starting in 1890.

Her parents later emigrated and lived nearby in Richmond, Cache, Utah. Two of her sisters, Matilda and Amanda, also emigrated and lived in Cache Valley.

Constance Jorgensen Christiansen (heads up, there is argument this might be Constance Christiansen Clawson/Huff, trying to get other photos to compare)

Her husband Ole passed away 27 February 1900 in Richmond, Cache, Utah and is buried there. She passed away 10 December 1932 in Portland while staying with her daughter Jennie. She had stayed for some time with Jennie as she was listed as living with her on the 1930 census. I don’t even know what she died of for certain. I was told at one point she stepped off a trolley in Portland, slipped and hit her head, and she later died from those injuries, but I cannot confirm that lore.

I knew she is buried was Multnomah Park Cemetery in Portland and while driving through made it a point to stop and visit her grave this past Wednesday. I knew she had passed away and was buried there, I am not aware of another single relative in the entire cemetery. Not that the cemetery is that large. But I knew she was there, that she has an empty grave in Richmond so the circumstances were such that her body was not brought home for burial beside her husband.

It struck me how solitary her grave is. She does have two daughters buried or interred in Portland, but neither of them are in this cemetery.

It even took me a while just to find it, it is near one of the roadways in the cemetery.

I cannot help but think of how far away she is from her parents and husband, even though she does have two daughters at least in Portland. But for some reason her location disturbs me. I don’t know why, I obviously had nothing to do with the decision 80+ years ago to bury her in Oregon. Any person who might have known is long gone. A death certificate might tell me more about her death, but not the reasons for her burial in Multnomah Park. Some things we will likely never know in this life.

Okay, I admit it, I do a little family history. One part of that family history is the endless search for photos. I guess I am an eternal optimist in that regard. I keep visiting family with the hope that I might find another photo somewhere. Funny enough, as that optimism keeps me visiting people and looking through old photo albums, the eternal pessimist in me is become slightly more and more frantic as I know how often people die and the next generation just junks things. Okay, maybe not everyone throws things away or tears apart the historic photos and giving a dutiful part to each descendant, but it becomes a little harder to track these things down the father we get from the original descendant.

Let me give one example. I have not written more of this family history because I would like to find more photographs. There must be more out there. My fourth great grandparents are Olavus Jorgensen and Hanna Mathe Christensen Jorgensen. They were born in 1830 in Drammen and 1831 in Sonde, respectively, in Norway. Hanna joined the LDS Church in 1866 and members of the family started to join over the coming decades.

My third great-grandmother, Constance Josephine Eliza Jorgensen, joined in 1876. She had married Olle Christiansen in 1874. Both her and Olle joined the LDS Church in 1876. They made their way to Utah and settled in Richmond, Cache, Utah. Tracking down a photograph of Olle, despite 11 children, has been impossible, granted he died in 1900.

In that pursuit, I stumbled upon Amanda Emilie Jorgensen. She is the youngest sister of Constance, and as far as I know, the youngest child of Olavus and Hanna Jorgensen. Olavus and Hanna had immigrated to Richmond in 1896. Amanda had followed about 1898 or 1899 with her husband Albert Sigvard Swensen.

While I could not find a photograph of Olle, I stumbled upon this photograph of Amanda.

Amanda Emilie Jorgensen Swensen (1872-1945)

I recently posted this photo on FamilySearch and have a number of her descendants contact me asking me where I got the photo! It appears her own descendants do not have her photo. Yet, oddly enough, I obtained this photograph from her grandson. But that one grandson kept it sequestered away since he lives far from Utah to where nobody else knew of it. I found him along with some other relative photographs, and now I am making the photo of her available to more of her line.

The moral of the story is those photos are out there! They must be sought after. You have to make the visits to those long-lost cousins and ask to see their photos.

Back to my main point. I have hoped to find a photograph or two of the old Coley Cabin to the southeast of Richmond. I have my own photographs of the cabin almost completely collapsed in on itself. But this past couple of months, I became aware of a photograph of the cabin that hung on the wall of Sarah Colleen Coley Todd in Buhl, Twin Falls, Idaho. Apparently Colleen was born in the Coley Cabin near Richmond and someone took a photograph of it for her. Here it is.

Coley Cabin near Richmond, Utah

Unfortunately, the photo is not of the highest quality. It is more of a printer print than a photo print. But I will take what I can get. Now I have to find out who took the original photograph. Maybe they have it in its original photo quality.

Nevertheless, I keep hoping some day I will find some pictures from 50 or 80 years ago of the cabin. Sadly, those pictures of homes (and not of people) are the ones that tend to get trashed when photos pass generations. Nobody cares about a home that there is not a link to. Most of the time, the story of the home is not even known. But here is one that is preserved.

I am still working on the history of Herbert Coley and Martha Christiansen Coley. It is my understanding they built the cabin. But I have so few photos of them and I keep hoping that as I visit family, I can get just another photo or two of them. I do not have many.

Herbert and Martha Coley are pleased to announce the marriage of their daughter Lillian to Joseph Nelson Jonas, son of Joseph and Annie Jonas. They were married 6 September 1916 in Logan, Cache, Utah at the LDS Temple. The photo above we think was taken around 1930 or so and is not a wedding photo.

Lillian was born the first child of ten to Martha Christiansen and Herbert Coley 26 August 1898 in Lewiston, Cache, Utah. Both Herbert and Martha were Mormon immigrants to Utah in the 1880’s. Herbert and Martha both had native land accents from England and Norway respectively. Herbert was a diligent laborer who would acquire full ownership in their home by 1910. Martha was a strict and involved homemaker and mother.

Lillian grew up assisting her mother in maintaining the home, large garden, and raising younger siblings. By the the time she married, she had six younger children who were in the home (three more were yet to be born). When Lillian was born, the family lived in Lewiston. By 1910, the family had moved to Wheeler, Cache, Utah (or the 1900 Census did not have Wheeler broken from Lewiston). The Wheeler area is almost 6 miles directly to the west from Richmond, Cache, Utah as indicated by the link. We do not know where they lived in Wheeler.

By the time Lillian married Joseph, the family lived at roughly 1950 E 9000 N to the south and east of Richmond. The remainder of the cabin built by Herbert Coley was still in the middle of a cow pen in fall 2012 on the south side of the road, but was in pretty poor condition. Ellis Jonas took me there about 2002 and indicated the home to me as where they lived when he was a little boy. Martha moved in to town, Richmond, after Herbert passed away in 1946.

Joseph Nelson Jonas was the sixth of seven child born to Annetta Josephine Nelson and Joseph Jonas 19 November 1893 in or near Ellensburg, Kittitas, Washington. About 1896, Joseph’s mother, Annie, went to the Eastern Washington Hospital for the Insane in Fancher, Spokane, Washington (she is listed as Ann J Jonas). She was in and out of hospitals throughout her life but as Joseph was one of the younger children, he would not have known his mother a little better.

Joseph and Margaret Jonas about 1899

Annie got out of the Eastern Washington Hospital 31 October 1899 and went home to Ellensburg and continued to be a handful for the family. The family on the 1900 Census in Cle Elum, Kittitias, Washington does not include Annie though and the census that year has Joseph Sr in both Cle Elum and Spokane about two weeks apart in June 1900. Annie’s sister, Charlotte, visited in 1901. Due to Annie’s mental and emotional state, and with Joseph Sr’s approval, the whole Jonas family went to Utah to stay temporarily with Annie’s brother, Nels August Nelson. Uncle August lived in Crescent, Salt Lake, Utah and the Jonas party arrived 3 July 1901 from Washington.

John, Joseph, and William Jonas probably right before moving to Utah in 1901. The photo is stamped with Ellensburg on the matting.

Joseph Sr for one reason or another went back to Washington with the youngest child Margaret. Nels suggested it was legal issues, it might have just been the farm that needed attention. Annie’s issues were such that August and his wife, Fidelia, signed an affidavit of insanity and had her admitted to the Utah State Hospital 1 November 1901.

Joseph Sr had been raised as a Catholic and Annie Nelson had been raised LDS. Annie decided she did not like LDS men and wanted to marry a Gentile and did so. The children were raised Catholic in Washington. Now in Utah, Uncle August made sure the children learned about the LDS faith. The three boys elected to be baptized LDS on 10 January 1902 in Crescent by their Uncle August in an ice covered Jordan River. All three were confirmed 12 January 1902 by Jaime P Jensen. Rosa joined 6 February 1902, also in Crescent under the hand of Uncle August in a hole chipped in the Jordan River. Margaret did not join as she stayed near her father in Washington.

In 1904, Rosa married a boy, Christian Andersen, from Richmond. They married in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah. They moved to 137 E 100 S in Richmond. Joseph and his brothers resided with Uncle August until after their mother passed in 1907, then they would regularly and for prolonged periods stay with Rosa in Richmond. The 1910 Census lists Joseph at home in Crescent. Read more of Brother John Jonas.

Joseph attended Brigham Young College in Logan and graduated with his diploma 3 June 1915. We don’t know much about his time at Brigham Young College but the story goes he wrestled with their team and did so very effectively. William, Joseph’s brother, was apparently here at school during some overlapping periods. Joseph became well known for his love of gospel conversations. He was known for regularly discussing and even arguing the gospel with extra determination. No hard feelings developed due to his ardor in arguing since others would always agree to a handshake after a good debate.

Joseph Jonas graduation diploma from Brigham Young College in Logan, Utah

Below is a copy of a picture believed to be from his graduation at BYC. I have not been able to find the original of this photo or a copy at Utah State University’s archives where the Brigham Young College limited records are located (which are less than cooperative on letting me rummage through all the unknown photos).

In Richmond Joseph and Lillian met when Lillian’s father, Herbert, hired Joseph to help harvest hay. It was within six months, according to the story, that they were married. The two were married 6 September 1916 in the Logan LDS Temple.

Joseph registered for the draft of World War I on 5 June 1917. When he registered, he indicated he was a laborer working for Olaf Neilson, the man who would later become a brother-in-law. He indicated he was taking care of his wife and father. He also indicated that his eyes were brown and his hair was brown. He is listed as short and stout. Here is his signature from that registration. According to his family, he stood about 5’6″ and was very muscular.

Joseph’s father passed in Richmond in June 1917. Lillian gave birth to Joseph Herbert Jonas 14 August 1917 in Richmond.

In 1919, Joseph and his two siblings, Rosa and William, had all moved to Idaho. They operated a dry farm raising grain in Cleveland, Franklin, Idaho. Christian and Rosa, along with Joseph, did most of the work on the farm and lived about a mile apart. William taught at the school in Thatcher, Franklin, Idaho. The Andersen and Jonas families also kept cows, pigs, chickens, and a sizable garden. This is the only home Joseph and Lillian Jonas would together own. Joseph arrived with the cows in Thatcher on 1 April 1919. Lillian stayed in Richmond due to her pregnancy and while Joseph established the farm. Communications were slow because mail was held at Thatcher. Joseph and Lillian only heard from each other when Joseph made it in to Thatcher to pick up the mail or send a letter.

Spencer Gilbert Jonas was born 1 September 1919 in Richmond. Lillian and the two boys joined Joseph in Cleveland.

The 1920 Census found the Jonas family on 26 January 1920 living on the Cleveland Road outside of Thatcher.

Irwin John Jonas was born 2 September 1921 in Cleveland, but listed as Thatcher.

In 1923 or early 1924, the family then moved to Lewiston, Cache, Utah. The farm was not working out and he was able to obtain employment with the Utah-Idaho Central Railroad. Joseph worked on a section gang, just like his father had. The gang’s job was to repair rotten timbers, hammering in spikes, tightening bolts, and maintaining the rail line. He worked 7 days a week, sometimes all night, coming home only after a shift was over.

The family lived in a boxcar that had its wheels removed. A ditch ran under a portion of their home. Another boxcar nearby was used as a storage shed. It was here 15 May 1924 that Wilburn Norwood Jonas was born. Ellis Seth Jonas arrived in this home 6 September 1926, their 10 year wedding anniversary.

Joseph kept a tub of furnace oil in the shed. It accidentally caught on fire and and Joseph immediately announced to Lillian that the storage shed would burn down and probably their home too. Joseph, known for being a bit of a prankster, was not believed by Lillian despite his insistence. Joseph ran back to the shed and picked up the burning tub of fuel and carried it outside the shed. While he saved the shed and his home, he found himself in Ogden for several weeks with 2nd and 3rd degree burns. A 9 February 1927 newspaper mention in the Ogden Standard Examiner tells of his being brought to the Dee Hospital on Tuesday the 8th for treatment of burns to the face.

In 1927, Joseph was promoted foreman and oversaw the Quinney line through Wheeler, Thaine, and ending at Quinney (now Amalga). Later, he accepted another foreman job and moved to the railroad town of Uintah, Weber, Utah where he lived in row housing. Here is a picture taken while living there.

Picture from Uintah Railroad Camp toward Weber Canyon about 1927

Joseph filed for divorce 2 March 1929 claiming Lillian had deserted him. The article in the paper indicates they had not lived together since 20 February 1928. It was during this time on 4 September 1928 that Evan Reed Jonas was born in Ogden. The divorce was dismissed on 9 March 1929 due to the party’s stipulation. Joseph again sued on 8 April 1929. He was ordered to pay $75 a month until the case was resolved. Joseph and Lillian had the case dismissed after they worked out their issues.

The family later moved into a comfortable home owned by the railroad at 102 17th Street in Ogden, Weber, Utah. It was a row house, but since he was Section Foreman, the only one with a porch. Joseph’s father, Joseph, had also served as Section Foreman. Joseph’s main responsibility dealt with the Huntsville and Plain City/Warren lines. During this time Joseph and Lillian became known as generous hosts where all visitors were always given more than enough to eat. Joseph prided himself on the vegetable garden they grew at this home.

On 6 November 1929 Lillian was hit and ran over by an automobile driven by Jack Mobley. It knocked her unconscious but she quickly regained consciousness. She spent the night in the hospital and was pretty seriously bruised and lacerated but suffered no broken bones. Joseph and Lillian admitted they were walking in the middle of the road when the accident occurred.

Joseph and Lillian continued active in the LDS church. Joseph regularly debated and discussed religion with others. He was also known to be strict in adherence to principles and expected his children to do the same. He was not afraid to “switch” his children when they got in trouble or disobeyed. One thing family members always commented about Joseph was his ability to remember and recall scripture in a conversation and discussion. Not only that, but when questioned to prove it, he was familiar enough with the book that within moments he could find the chapter and verse. His familiarity with the bible surprised many people, especially from a railroad laborer.

Joseph and some friends at work after a game of shoes

Lillian Annetta Jonas was born 15 July 1930 in Ogden. The 1930 Census found Joseph and Lillian at their home on 9 April 1930. The family was fairly comfortable, they could even afford some of the best appliances.

Joseph Jonas Maytag Warranty Certificate

Joseph was especially glad to have a girl after six sons in a row.

Joseph stands on the back row, second from the left. This is his Section Gang in Ogden.

Joseph and Lillian had a scare in 1931 when their son, Joseph, disappeared for a couple of weeks. He had been kidnapped by a Mr. J J Nelson and taken to Pocatello, Bannock, Idaho. He was finally recovered on 20 June 1931. The man was arrested after he beat young Joseph in public and the police determined Joseph was the missing boy from Ogden.

LeReta Mary Jonas was born 1 August 1932 in Ogden.

On Tuesday, 6 September 1932, a month after LeReta was born and on his 16th wedding anniversary, Joseph went to work as usual. Joseph knew the dangers of working on the railroad. It was near lunch time and his son, Norwood, was taking Joseph his lunch. Joseph saw Norwood and got down off a trolley near Lincoln and 20th Street, near the American Can Company plant. After getting off the trolley, he turned and walked toward Norwood and hit his head on a wire Mr. Child had strung down to do some welding. (Mr. Child was haunted by this episode the rest of his life because Joseph had warned him about the way he had hung the wire.) The shock knocked Joseph on his back unconscious and not breathing. Joseph died immediately but doctors worked on Joseph for over an hour. Lillian said Norwood was forever affected by the event. Joseph died at roughly 1:00 PM.

Here is a copy of the newspaper notice.

Here is the burial notice.

As a historical side note, here is the front of the train schedule Joseph had in his wallet at the time of his death.

Utah Idaho Central Railroad Company Time Table from 1932-1933

The loss of Joseph dealt the family a hard blow not only with losing a family member, but it also lost them the company housing in which they were living. Lillian, at the mercy of family, moved immediately back to Richmond to be near her family. Lillian’s father, Herbert Coley, was appointed administrator for Joseph’s estate. The railroad paid out roughly $1,200 to Joseph’s estate. The funeral, transport, and burial of the family cost Lillian $150. The estate did not begin making regular payments to Lillian until 1934. Until then, Lillian wrote to the railroad for assistance and help. The railroad was happy to provide passes for the family to travel. Unfortunately, the company quit handling company coal so they could not fulfill her requests but allowed the boys to have all the used railroad ties they wanted for firewood.

Lillian’s signature from the back of one of the estate checks written to her.

Fortunately, the money from the estate was enough to purchase a home for Lillian in Richmond from a Melvin & Bernetta Smith for $500. This gave Lillian a home to raise her children and less worry about providing for her family. The home was located on the north side of the road at roughly 65 E 400 S in Richmond, Utah. Herbert and Martha, Lillian’s parents, lived across the street, but their home was a good couple hundred feet from the road.

Lillian made good effort to raise six unruly, now fatherless, boys and two girls. At Joseph’s death, the children were ages 15, 13, 11, 8, 6, 4, 2, and 1 month. The Jonas brood were known for being a bit coarse and boisterous as the years went on. Only a few years would pass before the children would start marrying.

As I have written some of the histories already posted and continue the drafts of a few for later, I am surprised how many of my ancestors came through Albert Docks in Liverpool, England. Most of my ancestors that came to America during the 1800’s came in the latter part of the century and passed through this series of warehouses/docks. Doing some research, this was the first non-combustible warehouse system in the world. The world’s first hydraulic cranes were also used here.

I took this picture on 13 April 1999 as we visited as a part of our mission tour. Since so many church history sites were in our mission, we were taken on tour and the Albert docks were included. At that time I had no knowledge that a single one of my ancestors walked these very stones. Since a good portion of my ancestry is German, I assumed they would not have traveled through Liverpool. I was wrong. As far as I can tell, every ancestor that immigrated in the 19th century came through this very port. German, Swedish, Norwegian, English, Welsh. One was even married on the water as they waited for their turn to leave the port.

Looking back, I wish I had known this at the time. But still, I am glad I have a picture from that day I visited. You can see The Three Graces between the Albert buildings. The Royal Liver Building is the farthest with the clock tower. This building also has the storied Liver birds on the top of each tower. The next building is the Cunard Building, built by the Shipping Company. The closest one, with the dome, is the Port of Liverpool Building. All three are pretty buildings and when I lived across the Mersey in Liscard, I would often see these impressive buildings from the opposite shore. I had no idea Albert Dock even existed then, otherwise I may have snapped a shot of it at that time.

Like this:

Walking and visiting with a professor today, she asked the name of my daughter. I indicated it was Aliza and she stated, “A good English name. You definitely look English, is it a family name?” We chatted a little longer before we separated, but it left me thinking, “Exactly what are my proportions of nationality?” Well, here they are. Even though I had always thought I was more German, I was wrong. I am more British.

Looking back 6 generations, I took each ancestor and assigned them 1/32 of my blood line (obviously). I then assigned them the nation to which their ancestors came from. Most of this generation were still in their native country so it was easy. My “US” line is only those designated that I do not definitively know which mother country they came from because they are so long in Virginia (at least to 1780). I debated about whether to lump the Saxon, Prussian, and Wuerttemberg lines because I am not lumping the Ireland, Wales, and English lines. I have provided a separate indication of my “German” and “British” lines.

3/16 – England – Sharp, Bailey, Stoker, Eames, Coley, Rogers

1/8 – Netherlands – Van Leeuwen, Weenig, Janzen, Van der Meij

1/8 – Saxony – Schneider, Andra, Knauke, Richter

1/8 – Wuerttemberg – Wanner, Schmid, Nuffer, Greiner

1/8 – US – Meredith, Shepherd, Graham and Miles lines

1/16 – Ireland – Donaldson, Todd

1/16 – Norway – Christiansen, Jorgensen

1/16 – Prussia – Jonas, Schumacher

1/16 – Sweden – Nelson (Nilsson), Benson (Bengtsson)

1/16 – Wales – Williams, Jordan

All together

5/16 – British

5/16 – German

I am willing to bet all 4 of my US lines were Wales and England. Therefore, 7/16 would be British. This is the largest percentage of them all, almost 50% of me is British! Maybe that is why I served a British mission (although none of my family came from within my mission).

Robert Mathis shared with me this copy of a short history written by Amanda Emilie Jorgensen. It is a history of her parents, my fourth Great Grandparents. It also has a reference to Hanna’s parents. This was written around 1933.

History of my Parents

My father Olaves Jorgensen was born in Drammen Norway 19 November 1830.

When he was twelve years old he started working in a saw mill for Mr Kjer.

My mother Hannah Mathea Christensen was born in Drammen Norway fourteen November 1831. She was a dressmaker when she was old enough to work. They were married fourth november 1855 in Drammen Norway. Two girls were born there. Constanse and Olga. Then Mr. Kjer transferred Father to Fredrikstad Norway to another saw mill and he worked there until he came to America in 1896.

Mother was very religious and always went to some kind of church but never felt satisfied. She lived in an apartment house and was talking to a lady named Mrs. Ask that lived across the hall. Religion was mentioned and mother said she wanted to find a religion that baptised people like Jesus was baptised.

Mrs. Ask asked her if she had ever heard about the Mormon people and mother said no. Mrs. Ask said to be ready Sunday afternoon and she would take her to hear the Mormon Elders.

As soon as mother heard the Elders preach she knew it was the true church. The Priest and other people tried to tell her it was wrong but she wouldn’t listen. The Elders had to take her to the ocean to be baptised after dark as they would be arrested and put in jaail if they were seen baptising people.

Mother was a very faithful member and the missionaries were always welcome in their home. She was President of the Relief Society for years.

Father wanted to join but didn’t dare to because he knew he would lose his job. Father was baptised just before he and mother came to Utah.

They went directly to Richmond Utah in Cache Valley to be near their daughter Othelia. They were here four years and had never had the opportunity to go to the temple when mother died in November, 1900. Father and Othelia and Constanse came to Logan and did the work for mother and she was sealed to Father. Father died in November 1904 and they were both buried in Richmond Utah.

Mother told me that the pastor of the Luteran Church said her parents Christen Hansen and Marie Evensen were the most beautiful couple he had ever married while he was a pastor.

Like this:

Time keeps ticking by too quickly sometimes. I have so much to write but not as much time as I would like to do it in. Such is the limitations in the probationary game. There are plenty of achievements to report though in the past week or two.

This evening I spoke with Gerald Neuffer in Columbia, Missouri. In a most random turn of events, I noticed that a Jenna Neuffer became friends with my friend, Kami Lowe on Facebook. With a name as rare as Neuffer, I knew all odds were in my favor of having a near shared ancestry. I sent Miss Neuffer a message and asked for her Grandfather’s name and phone number. Which she supplied. Come to find out, I even had Gerald already in my family history. I just had his first name Myron (Gerald is his middle name but he goes by it. Probably due to remove confusion with his father’s name being Myron). He knew the Andra’s well and said he remembered Millie, who was just younger than him. Funny how small a world it is. He went to get his PhD and never left Columbia after moving there in 1947. We conversed for a little while he dug for information verifying I was not this total stranger calling for his family history for some other sinister reason. He sounds like a good guy. He asked if I was doing genealogy. I confirmed I was and that I was the family historian. He then happily related he was basically that for the Neuffer/Nuffer family. I was definitely glad to hear that. What is the chances of the Andra historian running into the Nuffer historian in Columbia Missouri? Very far removed from Preston, Idaho!

I received a phone call from Jacqui yesterday about the Phibbs/Ross/Beachell family. I tried returning her call and spoke with her mother for a few minutes. I am glad she finally returned my message. I only left it in May! That was before we moved!

In other news, there was an e-mail that found its way to me from Robert in Fresno, California. A most interesting question. He asked if I knew of any of the siblings of my Constance Jorgensen. I always felt Constance most likely had siblings but was never able to find any. Between her parents marriage and Constance’s birth, there is twelve years. I was sure there were other siblings. Olavus and Hanna Mathea Jorgensen immigrated with Constance and settled in Richmond, Utah. Constance married Ole Christiansen and gave birth to my Great Great Grandmother Martha Christiansen who is the mother of my Lillian Coley. Constance died in Portland, Oregon while visiting and was buried there. In the whole episode, I knew some day I would have to do some research in Norway to find the rest of this family. Well, Robert e-mailed me asking me if his grandmother, Amanda Jorgensen Swensen could be a child of Olavus and Hanna. He produced a copy of a hand written copy pedigree she had produced in 1935. Sure enough, everything lined up. Well, Amanda was born another 12 years after my Constance (24 after the marriage of the parents). She immigrated to Utah a good 10 years after her parents and sibling came over and settled in Logan, Utah. By the time she arrived her parents were both deceased and her sister had married. It seems that she never knew she was only 15 miles from her parent’s graves and her sister. The exciting news is that Amanda gave us the names of her siblings, none of which made it to America to her knowledge. We added the 5 siblings. Don’t know their ages, but definitely gives some more to go from. That will give us much more to go from when the time for the Norway research begins.

I am happy to report I completed the New Testament this evening. I am one day late. If I had read the one chapter a day, I would have finished yesterday. Last weekend put me just off enough that I did not catch up in time. I completed the Book of Mormon on schedule this year on August 27th. Now I can go through some General Conference talks and some other reading for the year. Next year is the Doctrine and Covenants which you can almost read three times in a year. I think I will just do it twice though.

The ward continues to blossom when it comes to family history. It seems like people are doing their homework, research, and compiling regularly. I have e-mails at least once or twice a week for help on something. That is an indication something is going on. That is definitely something which is a good thing.

Online the family history work continues to reveal new and interesting things. I received an e-mail from a Homer Mason. He was inquiring concerning the Jonas family in Washington State. Come to find out, Anna Jonas is his Grandmother. Anna was the daughter of William Jonas who was the brother to my Joseph Jonas; father to my great grandfather Joseph Nelson Jonas. He knows very little so it has been fun introducing him to the family. I have especially enjoyed his research on a line of the family I have not been able to crack. It has proved not to be an easy line for him, but with his living in Yakima, he is much closer and capable of doing the work than I can. I really hope I am accepted to the University of Idaho for Law School. Then I could work on the Jonas, Ross, and Sharp lines in Washington State.

Stepping back to the Andra family. This past weekend Amanda and I took a trip to Washington DC for our monthly temple visit. But a new aspect as emerged. My Great Uncle and Aunt, Donald and Lolane Andra, are now serving a mission in the temple. We went up Friday night and stayed with Amanda’s Uncle and Aunt in Springfield. Saturday we picked up Don and Lolane and made our way to Mt. Vernon. They thoroughly enjoyed themselves. It was the 18th Century Fair so there were masses of people. Don and Lolane are good and quick on their feet. Despite being in their 60’s they move well. Don reminds me so much of my Great Grandpa. I get a kick out of both of them. We were limited on time as they had to be to the temple to work later in the afternoon. We did probably the fastest walking tour of Mt. Vernon I can imagine. We zoomed all over the grounds, through the fair, and then back up to their apartment to change and attend the temple.

On a side note, as I went into the endowment room, I noticed the officiator’s name was John Whatcott. I looked at him and asked if he was from Kanosh. He looked a bit surprised at me and said he grew up there. I told him of the Whatcott’s I knew. After the session he asked me to remain in the celestial room so we could visit. We had a great visit. Come to find out he knows Don and Lolane from St. George. Small world. Don knew which session we were on and waited for us to leave the celestial room. He walked us down to the next floor and we parted again. I met Don’s Home Teaching companion, Elder Toronto, while picking up Amanda’s Aunt’s glasses from the temple lost and found. Funny how interlinked the world is, at least in the church.

I have not made mention of it yet, but I am going from contractor status to full associate status at Bank of America. Meaning, I will be an employee of Bank of America and not an at will person filling a seat. Many companies now do the contractor business as they can then hire on employees after they have shown their worth. I must have done well enough for them to offer me employment starting October 1. I am excited. Business has been picking up. I don’t know if it is from the crunch in the market or what. Bank of America definitely stands on higher ground than those feeling the squeeze or sinking under the housing market. One thing is for sure, with this rate cut, we are expecting the next month to be hectic.

My birthday came and went just like every other day or the year. I am back to being congratulated for it being my unbirthday. I received all sorts of e-mails (which will take me a good week to respond to them all), many messages on Facebook, and a couple of cards and gifts. Amanda and I enjoyed a nice big meal at Chili’s for dinner. We joked about it being our triannual beef night. It is birthdays or anniversary that I get to eat a steak. Monday was a 12 oz Ribeye. Mmmm, so good. That is of course not mentioning the Idaho potatos. Amanda got me a shirt, a jump drive, and something else which slips me at the moment. I also received a journal, a few checks, and some other random memorabilia. I honestly don’t feel any different now than I think I did when I was 19. Except the fact my knee was reconstructed in 2004 and doesn’t give me the issues it did at 19. So I guess I feel better than at 19. I have filled out in stature, even added a little padding in the middle, and perhaps a little wiser. Life is good.

My blessings continue to flow despite my inept nature. I continue to be given the little peaceable things of the kingdom from time to time. They make the living and endurance all worth it. Line upon line right? Sometimes I wish it was more page upon page, but alas, I am not the one running the show. Church goes well. I feel spiritually well. Not the muscular behemoth I would like to be spiritually, but I feel strong enough to do what needs to be done and any forseeable adventure.